Brittany Daniel

"Brittany was more flirtatious than me. I couldn't work it like she did." -Cynthia Daniel, on twin sister Brittany's distinguishing traits

After starring alongside her twin sister Cynthia in the TV series Sweet Valley High and 1995's The Basketball Diaries, Brittany embarked on a solo career, taking on the roles of a devious temptress in Dawson's Creek and a white trash hottie in Joe Dirt. She currently plays Sophia, the bisexual ex-girlfriend on That '80s Show.

SEX APPEAL

The delectable temptress named Eve? The trampy yet naive trailer-park girl? The bisexual ex? There's a reason why Brittany frequently gets cast in the roles that traditionally serve as the object of men's fantasies.

Along with being devastatingly attractive, Brittany carries that air of "I-know-something-you-don't" that is equally thrilling and terrifying, as if she's going to lure you into some kind of ridiculous role-playing scenario and then ruin your life by posting pictures of it on the Internet. Which, for reasons that perhaps only Freud could figure out, is terribly sexy... maybe it's the male equivalent of falling for the bad boy.

SUCCESS

Although it has only been of late that Brittany has become famous to the world at large, she has been notorious amongst thirteen-year-old girls for a while now. A love scene with Leonardo DiCaprio, an off-screen relationship with Joshua Jackson and breaking up the romance between Dawson and Joey (albeit only fictionally) have more than sufficed to get her blacklisted by every Teen magazine subscriber in the country, and make her the object of much sleepover smack talk.

While this kind of standing isn't going to make Brittany a likely candidate for a role in the next Mary-Kate and Ashley movie, it hasn't had too ill an effect on her career thus far. In fact, it should be a rule of thumb for actresses that if pre-adolescent girls despise you, you're doing just fine.

Many pundits saw Brittany's initial success as gimmicky, attributing it to the fact that she was one in a set of acting twins. Yet even from the outset of her career, Brittany seemed to distinguish herself in terms of acting talents, which could explain why roles came to her more easily than they did to her doppelganger, Cynthia. Brittany was nominated for a Young Artist Award for her work in Swans Crossing, and won one for her performances on Sweet Valley High.

Her portrayal of cokehead Blinkie in 1995's The Basketball Diaries was applauded both critically and commercially, and many dubbed her acting in Joe Dirt as the project's saving grace (similar remarks met the premiere of That 80's Show). Granted, she has flubbed her way into a few stinkers, such as 1999's Sonic Impact, but what young actor doesn't have a role alongside Ice-T hidden in the closet? She may be getting into her late twenties, but we still see Brittany as a prospect, with a pretty strong foundation to work from.

Brittany Daniel Biography

Brittany Ann Daniel was born in Gainesville, Florida on March 17, 1976, five minutes before the birth of her twin sister Cynthia. Mr. Daniel was a member of the Florida State University Systems Board of Regents as well as a devout Catholic, as was mom Carolyn, making for a rather strict upbringing for the Daniel twins and their older brother Brad. Nevertheless, whatever parameters their parents imposed on them did not conflict with the sisters' shared aspirations, and by the age of 11, both girls had begun working professionally as print models.

sunshine girl

By their 14th birthdays, Brittany and Cynthia both boasted rather lengthy modeling resumes, having appeared together in such teenybopper magazines as Seventeen, YM and Sassy. They had also made their first foray into the acting world in tandem, taking on the guest part of a double-headed dragon in a 1987 episode of The New Leave It to Beaver. While this first bit part may have seemed trivial at the time, the experience that accompanied it later proved fruitful.

At 5'6" and 5'7" respectively Cynthia and Brittany were considered too short for runway work and, although a profession as print models would certainly have been a reasonable option, early exposure to television work had suggested to the Daniel twins that their career paths did not have to be restricted to such.

no short order

It was Brittany who first capitalized on the opportunities that her experience afforded her, taking on a guest role on the television series Burke's Law. Work fostered further work, and in 1992, at the age of 16, Brittany won her first regular gig on the serial Swans Crossing, performing alongside other young aspiring actresses Mira Sorvino and Sarah Michelle Gellar. Swans Crossing turned out to be a large commitment for Brittany, requiring that she move to New York City during her seven-month span on the show, but it did not go without its rewards.

In 1993, Brittany was nominated for a Youth in Film Award for Best Young Actress in an Off-Primetime Series, upping her visibility in the industry. Brittany made her homecoming to Gainesville for her 1994 graduation from Gainesville High School, assured in part from her work on Swans Crossing that further roles were within reach upon her return to the entertainment business.

As it turned out, acting work not only awaited Brittany, but her sister Cynthia as well, as the two were cast in the leading roles of Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield for the television series Sweet Valley High immediately following their graduation. The twins moved to Studio City, California, where they sought additional parts to supplement the income and experience that Sweet Valley High provided them. While this consisted initially of commercial spots, perhaps most notably in a Doublemint Gum campaign, it also involved their first feature film appearance, alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in 1995's The Basketball Diaries.

singled out

By the time Sweet Valley High wrapped up in 1998, Brittany and Cynthia had expanded their acting expertise through further commercial work and appearances in the MTV series Singled Out and Fame or Shame. While their careers to this date had progressed successfully enough, the notion that their being perpetually typecast as twins was hindering their individual development prompted Cynthia to take a hiatus from the entertainment industry.

It did not take Brittany long to pick up work again following the loss of her usual sidekick. In 1999, a guest spot on Dawson's Creek as the temptress Eve soon transformed into a regular role. That same year, she made her first solo feature movie appearance alongside Ice-T in Sonic Impact. Further film work came in 2000 with the TBS disaster movie On Hostile Ground, and as Davis Spade's love interest in the 2001 comedy Joe Dirt.

In 2002, after a guest spot on That '70s Show, Brittany was cast as the bisexual Sophia in That '80s Show. A cameo from her sister Cynthia on the program marked the first professional reunion for the Daniel twins in a number of years.

talk of the town

While Brittany's acting talents and rapid rise to celebrity status have caught more than a few eyes, her off-screen exploits have also garnered her quite a bit of attention. A 1999 relationship with Dawson's Creek star Joshua Jackson landed Brittany on every gossip column in the country, as well as the on hit list of every 13-year-old girl in the Western hemisphere. Recent sightings of Brittany alongside Late Late Show host Craig Kilborn at Sacramento Kings basketball games have set teeth chattering again.